RGS Volume 4 Part 7

T/N: Part 6 has a dead link in NU. You can read Part 6 here in our site, just look through the Table of contents^^

Thud.

Melmond, who tripped over the tree roots without even feeling pain, immediately stood up from the ground. His mind, running through the forest where Abel disappeared, was as blank as his pale face.

Abel went to meet Karas, knowing the truth about him. What was about to happen next was unimaginable.

The only thing that came to mind was the worst-case scenario, so he forced himself to block his mind. He wondered if Abel’s heart had stopped, or if Karas, who knew nothing, would misunderstand and swing his sword at Abel.

If a terrible ending were to come, it seemed that Melmond’s heart would stop before Abel’s. The same was true for the butler running beside him who seemed to be in worse condition than Melmond.

Please, let Abel faint before meeting Karas.

The two relied on Abel’s weak body for the first time.

So, even while running frantically, they didn’t forget to look for anyone who had fallen to the ground.

Moreover, according to Kin, the culprit of all this, Abel already looked like he was about to collapse, didn’t he? So, if he gets lucky and faint before meeting Karas…

Stop.

The rising hope, pushing away their anxiety, ended as their steps halted. Abel, who seemed to have fainted, was sprawled out as the two had hoped. Or at least, it seemed to be Abel. It was hard to confirm as his face wasn’t clearly visible, and their head was just blank by the unexpected situation.

Being held and kissed by someone wasn’t among their worst expectations. Especially if that someone was Karas. Melmond and the butler inhaled sharply in unison. But like their frozen minds, their breaths were stuck.

What on earth is going on?

They were worried that Karas might get angry and swing his sword, but he suddenly kissed him? Things are going very smoothly. Did Abel grab Karas, and reveal who he was, and Karas accepted it happily without any misunderstandings? And then, did they immediately share a passionate embrace and kiss, with their hearts connecting instantly?!

Melmond’s eyes widened to the point of tears. This was beyond unexpected, it was shocking. However, the shock to the butler, who had served the young master all his life, was incomparable.

Thud.

The butler sank to the ground as if he were about to faint following Abel’s footsteps. But before the butler’s eyes rolled back, Kin stepped forward and muttered softly.

“It looks serious.”

Of course, it was serious. The butler, holding Kin’s leg, expressed his resentment.

“Pig, because of you….”

“The medicine?”

When Kin, who always got angry at the title of ‘Pig’, asked seriously, the butler finally regained his fading consciousness.

“Ah, the medicine?”

When Melmond also looked at him with the same expression, Kin pointed with his chin. To where Karas had just parted his lips for another kiss.

“It’s the medicine you take when you can’t breathe properly.”

Upon the brief explanation, Melmond and the butler both turned to Karas. Just as Karas took a deep breath after releasing his lips, he kissed Abel again. It was only then that they realized. Karas wasn’t kissing, he was trying to resuscitate Abel by giving him mouth-to-mouth.

Thud.

The butler stood up from the ground and he hurriedly felt around for a medicine bottle.

If he couldn’t breathe, it was as bad as it could get.

The butler felt his head spinning and his hands trembling. When he couldn’t find the medicine properly in his panicked, Melmond approached him with a serious look.

“Has this happened before?”

“Yes, only once. A long time ago.”

The butler whispered, unable to properly continue his sentence.

“He suddenly couldn’t breathe and collapsed. The doctors said there was no way to help him, so they said he might as well pass away.”

“But how did it get better?”

At Melmond’s urgent question, the butler turned his dazed eyes.

“Just the master coming and praying for him…”

It was obvious if it was a prayer from the master. The caretakers of the temple led by the King’s Heart called themselves masters and prayed, receiving a lot of money. Of course, there was no real effect to it.

“Try to remember. Besides that, there must have been another method used. Perhaps, a medicine that was only given at that time.”

As Melmond urged, the butler bit his lips, as if he was unable to recall the old incident. Melmond, who was waiting for an answer, eventually swallowed a sigh and took a step forward. Karas had just raised his head. Then, he looked down at Abel without saying anything and his lips parted.

“Medicine.”

Melmond, who was about to step forward at the command-like words, froze like a statue. There was no medicine.

What should they do?

As he turned to look at the butler with that thought, he saw that the butler was also lost in thought, looking at Melmond. As the two exchanged bewildered gazes for a moment, Karas’ slow voice was heard.

“There’s none?”

With no answer, Karas’ eyes turned to the standing motionless figures. Just a mere eye contact seemed to bring an inexplicable chill over them. The absence of medicine in front of him felt like a grave sin.

The chill turned into fear and increased their anxiety. There is only one reason why Karas was trying to save the other person.

He realized it. He knew that the person he was holding was Abel.

However, what was important was the reason why Karas was not in a good mood.

He couldn’t tell if it was simply because Abel had collapsed or because he had said something before collapsing. As he swallowed his saliva and stepped back, Kin, who was familiar to Karas, stepped forward. He watched Abel closely and noticed that his breathing had slowly returned to normal.

“Your Majesty.”

He called Karas and glanced sharply behind him. It was unlikely, but he asked cautiously, not forgetting to be on guard in case there were any remaining enemies.

“Is there something wrong with young master Lil?”

Melmond and the butler looked at Karas as they became more tense at Kin’s question. When the time waiting for his response felt like an eternity, Karas stood up with Abel in his arms. However, what he said as he stepped forward was not an answer.

“Step aside.”

Melmond and the butler both stepped back at the dry command, and even Kin flinched and moved slightly to the side as if startled. As the space between the three widened, Karas tried to pass through them while holding Abel. However, the butler who had stepped back blocked Karas without realizing it when he saw Abel’s slumped back who had collapsed. Before Melmond could stop him, the trembling voice of the butler came out.

“I-I’ll check to see how young master Lil is hurt first… Ugh!”

His voice ended with a groan along with the sound of hitting the ground.

Thud!

It was the sound of the butler who had been kicked by Karas’ foot, hitting the roots of the tree and rolling on the ground. He seemed to stiffen in pain, unable to move properly in his fallen position. His moans flowed like cries from his lips, filling the dark night. Karas paid no attention and moved his feet toward the open path again.

Thud.

Strangely, Melmond felt that the sound of his movement was as loud as the sound of drums next to his ears. It was only after he disappeared from his sight that he realized that the sound was his own startled heart, but he still couldn’t move. It was only when he heard Kin’s question that he finally thought of the butler.

“Who is he?”

“Who is he?”  [T/N: This is a repeated question by Melmond.]

Melmond quickly approached the butler, hiding his trembling voice. The butler was trembling and vomiting blood. He groaned, unable to breathe properly due to the pain of the area he had been hit. Melmond asked if he was okay but couldn’t hear a response. Instead, Kin’s question was heard again. And he noticed that his voice turned sharp.

“Young master Lil. What is his true identity?”

Melmond raised his head with a serious look, kneeling on one knee next to the butler. Kin narrowed his eyes at the darkness where Karas had disappeared and quickly lowered his gaze.

“What are you hiding?”

“……”

Melmond, who had kept silent, turned to look at the darkness where Karas had disappeared like Kin. Karas’ actions were strange enough for Kin to sense something.

Of course.

Karas’ actions couldn’t be the same as before if he knew Abel’s true identity.

However, Abel said he wouldn’t reveal his true identity.

Could it be that Abel said something unintentionally while he was not in his right mind?

Melmond couldn’t think anymore. He muttered as he tried to lift the butler’s body.

“Later, uh, I’ll tell you.”

Kin looked down at Melmond with cold eyes, as if telling him to keep his promise, and then ran towards where Karas had disappeared. Melmond sighed inwardly as he heard Kin’s footsteps slowly fading. And he asked the butler, who was struggling to get up.

“Hey, are you okay?”

Whether the bones that were hit by Karas were broken or not, the butler couldn’t straighten his back properly. But even in his contemplative state, he thought of the young master first.

“I have to, *cough*, hurry and chase after the young master… ugh.”

The butler couldn’t continue speaking due to the pain in his chest. Melmond frowned and tried to calm him down.

“I understand, so stop talking for now. Take care of your body first.”

“Ugh! M-Melmond!”

The butler, who had leaned on Melmond, suddenly seemed to remember something and regained his strength to speak.

“Th-The brown bottle, ah, that.”

Brown bottle?

Melmond searched through his memory and recalled the words the butler had said before. When he laid out the young master’s medicine and explained, he had emphasized the brown bottle particularly.

‘This is a very dangerous medicine to be taken when severely ill. It’s a risky medicine that can become poison if taken incorrectly, so it should only be taken two or three times a year, but it’s enough to recover your strength immediately. The dosage should be appropriate, and you should be careful not to take it within a short period. You should wait at least three months before taking it again.’

Yeah, if it’s that medicine, it might be effective.

Melmond understood the butler’s intention and quickly searched through his body and took out the brown bottle.

“Are you talking about this medicine?”

Nod. The butler weakly nodded as he added.

“Yes, if you give it to the young master…ugh…”

“I understand. I’ll take care of it myself.”

Melmond lifted the butler onto his back, preventing him from speaking any further. Melmond walked in the direction Kin had gone, as he held the brown bottle in his hand, tightly clenched.

                                                                         ⊹˚. ♡.𖥔 ݁ ˖ ⊹˚. ♡.𖥔 ݁ ˖            

Kin had boasted of knowing Karas well, having served him directly for the past six years. When he first saw him, there weren’t any high expectations from the king, who was of similar age to be regarded as his own son. Nevertheless, he always bravely wielded his sword at the forefront with his soldiers.

It wasn’t unconditional loyalty to the king, nor was it a desire to gain a share like most lords who participated in the war. The life of a poor regional lord was somewhat bearable, even though it was difficult. However, he disliked passing on this poverty, which had persisted for hundreds of years, to his son and grandson.

Ruling the territory was supposed to be the Kin family’s responsibility, but just like everywhere else, the temple established by the King’s Heart ruled as if they were the owner. Kin had only one enemy, the King’s Heart. And the only way to overthrow them was for the king to regain power, so it didn’t matter to him if he was young and as expressionless as a doll.

He wanted to stand before his own son with the pride of having tried to change the country. However, the king who he thought was powerless, continued to win victories in the war. As he spent years in a chaotic state due to the war, he realized one more thing about Karas.

He was not just a bloodthirsty person who simply enjoyed fighting. Some of the war profiteers he sent to the capital as examples grew into opposing forces that restrained the King’s Heart. The power that controlled the people through the spread temples throughout the country suddenly became feeble in the face of the territory that expanded several times.

Now, looking at the whole country, there were far more people who did not believe in the King’s Heart. Furthermore, the King’s Heart was too preoccupied to have the time to expand the temple due to conflicts with war profiteers and power struggles. This gave hope to Kin. His heart trembled with the anticipation that he could shatter the King’s Heart rather than the joy of returning home once the war is over.

Beneath Karas’ expressionless face lay a sharp insight that no one could match. Thus, Karas became everything to him. Even though he had never praised or comforted him, not even once. Even when Ashler, the most trusted, was gravely injured and on the brink of death in the war, it was the same.

Now, he had saved the lives of four commanders who had become his confidants, but he still felt as if he was devoid of emotion, almost as if it was all done by coincidence. Of course, no one complained because they knew that Karas was the king they had to serve and so, they should not question his intentions nor emotions.

They only hoped that he would genuinely trust them as his confidants and open his heart to them even a little. Perhaps that is why everyone overreacted and fought like children for his praise, even to the slightest remark Karas made casually. They didn’t mind if the king viewed them merely as tools.

However, he breathed life into someone to save them. He even kicked the butler, who had stepped forward to help, as if he wouldn’t let anyone take away young master Lil from his arms. This left Kin quite shocked. Karas, who was devoid of emotions.

Kin suddenly recalled what Ashler had said before.

“Yes, His Majesty has no emotions. That’s why he seems more cruel. But it’s not cruelty out of greed, selfishness, or self-satisfaction. It feels, how should I put it, pure like a newborn child. As if he’s completely empty. But I know there was a time when that emptiness was filled, even if only for a short while. It was only for two months. But that’s why I can’t give up hope on him. I believe there’s still a human heart left in him.”

Kin did not know much about Karas’ childhood, however, he heard that a Regas, whom he trusted, died within less than two months. He was the only person he had opened his heart to, and he had watched with weariness as people similar to that Regas were repeatedly sent from the King’s Heart.

Karas had never shown any interest in them. But he showed an unusually deep reaction to Lil, who was completely opposite in appearance. He planned to hear the reason from Melmond soon. As an important issue at hand was something else.